Shoemaking



W. J. SMITH El AL SHOEMAKING Jan. 8, 1935.

Filed July 6, 1932 Patented Jan. 8, 1935 .k aw

Leicester, England, assignors to United Shoe U i 3 Claims,

v This invention relates to improvementsin shoes making and has particular; reference to novel methods got i tempering shoe ,bottom part-s and noyeljmeans-adapted to be employed inpracticing such methods; Although not necessarily limited thereto; the present invention'willhereinbe illus trativelydescribed with particular reference "to tempering the channel flap of the outsole of a McKay-sewed shoe.

1;;Inthe manufacture of McKay-sewedfshoes, it

is ;u sually;- considered, necessary that the "outsole be in a tampered condition when, certain, operationsgfor example, channelingandleveling op: erations, areperformed upon it and, therefore, itais a commom'practice to render theuleather workableby moistening the sole. HFI'his-isgenerallydone before the sole is attached by placing thesolein water and then standing the sole on a bench or-a special rack to permitgsurplus'moisture' to drain off and also to allow the moisturegto penetrate well intogtheinterior of the leatherlbso as-wto render the (S016im81l0W. If any substans tial interval is to elapse abefore the: sole, is .to be applied to a shee -the sole may be retained 1 in proper mellow condition by keeping it in a damp atmosphere until justbeforeit is to be applied to; the shoe, thus preventing, excessiveidrying' of thfiSQlE. VI 3 '1 9:

'-;After the sole has been, applied to'the-shoe; however, successive operations such asfchanneh ing, channel opening-,- fsewing and channel 1ce--,v

i menting operations are; performed before; the

ness of the "channel flap the {lap will tend to become dryer and harderthan will the :bodyipor ti'onof the sole. c :The channel slaying operation is normally performed just beforetheleveli'ng op.- eration: and in order .to obtairr' the results referred to the channel flapishould be moist and workable and :since,: as ,justzindicatedggithe flap will often by, this time. have dried outito a; hard and unworkable conditiom "it r hasrtsometimos ."beenuthe v practice to retemper i the channel .flap either *by dipping the shoe bottom' inwater; or; by applying water to theisole withapspongeorkwbi ush.

isuchfapprocedure is disadvantageous, however;

- Machinery"GorporatiomTaterson, N."J., 'a"-corporation of New Jerseyig 4W;

' ;Application .luly"6,il932, ,Serial No. ,621,066,,,;;W Y" Y l n11 GreatBritain July 15,1931 h v i"; p

for the: following reasons hfter-leveliri gthe shoe hasnormally performed upon itthose operations known ingthe trade-,asfinishingg opera tion sand" itis important that'the shoe should be fairly dry before these finishing-i operations are performed. If howeventhe channel fiap ,and the adjacent sole-margin have been moistened in the manner described just prior ;to leveling, the shoe will takesome,eonsiderablegtime to become dry enough to permit.the finishingoperations to be performed and either anp inconvenient delay in the progress ofthework through the factory is caused at this stage gor recourse must be; had to more or less prolonged treatment; in-;drying apparatus to dry the work. Furthermore-the wet,- twinel'o the; e fre ntlm uq s i which fail, t disappear ondrying :somake it-neces-r sary tor; the manufacturer to paint; the ,bottomof the finished shoe insteadrof, merelystaining. it or erwi e pr cin the. oeca lc x a u a finish of the shoe-i ,bottom.; The; tendency to stain is more in, evidence in cases where water is applied locally, by; means of a-spo'ngew or, brush than in cases where the r soles arertemperediat an early stage of manufacture uniforrn immersion; Thus, IIOmgthfi; pointrof; view of its liabilityto cause tdisflguring'stains upon theqshoe bottom; the aforesaid methods, of retempering the chan-, nel flaps rare 4 disadvantageous, mFurthermore, prior to channel flap laymg, the inside surface of the, flap is usually coated with-i adhesive, for example, latex, i whichyserves subsequently to hold the flap: in, laid: down; position.:; ;The;efiect of water applied to the flap either previous-to or subsequent, to;lthe applying of the adhesive is usually 'detrimentalto the holding powerof the adhesive either through dilution or otherwise.

i In view :ofrthedisadvantages :iiiherent' in the former practices above explained, an object ofthe present; invention is to"providenimproved' apparatus by which .open channel-flaps on the bottoms of "shoe-soles may be tempered, and i by whichhardenedcoati'ngs d adhesive substance soluble by I heat or moisture may ;be 'rendered tacky, both without staining thesoles or depriv ing them of such adhesive substance. i

In accordance' with this object; the invention mg the sizeand. shape of aftread-soleya work supporting platform adjacent to, and in register as a gas burner 16 supported-{uponashelf- 18 above the funnel 26 of the container 22. Nor- I plates 40 the steam is further-constrained by a ation upon the tread face.

flap on the-tread-so1e or a shoeand the soften-"- flanges 24 and '1 from the front of which pro'ject's' thereservoir 28 at Iar'ate'just sufficient to ico'm- 'pensate for the loss through. evaporation Sas "atmosphere. *"I'hese openings arelof nearly the with the opening to permit emission of steam Shoes so placed are supported by platforms of through the latter, and means for supplying reticulate construction which may be panels 46 steam in the casing below the partition. of wire netting attached to the plate 42 around The invention will be explained with reference the openings 44 so as to fulfill their work-supto the accompanying drawing in which porting duty without masking the shoe-bottoms Fig. 1 is a viewin side elevation of apparatus or obstruc-tingthe flow ofthe steam to or, along for 1 m er n -Lin nelrfla s 9 h e re d w est upola Pre er bl h tread soles of shoes; plate 42 and the panels 46 are curved to approxi- Fig. 2 is a plan view of the apparatu U rnate the lengthwise curvatures of shoe bottoms. Fig. 3 is a fragmentary side elevational View @Secured to the rearward edge of the plate 42 is of a direct pressure-leveling machine such -'a's "-"a'member 48 the forward portion of which, as may be employed in carryingout certain steps of ushown in 1, is. located slightly above the the method; l -f ,,.1 evel"o f the plate 42. This member 48 is pro- Fig. 4 is an inverted p1an .vie;w of:a shoei1lusf-,; vided with twovnotches or recesses each shaped .trating the step of laying the channel flap of =;;;to:-receive andhregister the toe portion of a shoe the tread sole; and (a I placedpn the apparatus. The sides and rear Fig. 5 is a side elevational'wiewiof:the shoe fportionfdfit ejtopofthe apparatus extend, at 50, illustrating the performance of a. finishing operabove the'lev'el of a shoe placed in position on the A. 3;; apparatus, and guard the steam rising around In thepractice of the improved method hereboth ends and both sides of a sole from the disin exemplified,'- the tempering orthe channel sipating efiect of external draughts.

According' toonew'ay of using the above described "apparatus, it may be "placed by' the side or a'l'evelling machine'of the direct pressure ing of latex thereon may bo'thbe accomplished by the use of apparatussuch 'a's th'at s'liown ir' i Figs. 1 and 2 'of the"drawing. *[Ihis apparatus comprises 1 a casing forming a vertical" chimney of which the upper portion 'loprovides a treat ment chamber, the lower portion-12a'steam-sup plying chamber, and; the intermediate portion 8 a"connec'ting conduit; "Anopening 14 is-"pro vided at the front of the bottom portiodor-the apparatus to house heating means hereinsh'own' in" United States Letters Patent No. 1,275,562,

Jerram'and Gouldbourn and shown in' 'Fig.""3' of the drawing of this application and in which shoes to be leveled are-mounted upon oscillatory jacks that are I movedalternat'ely into position normally" reach the leveling machine with the channel-"flap projecting and 'adhesively coated but inhard'and unworkable'condition, though the body of "the sole, being, as already mentioned, thicker; and'slower'to dry than is thechannel which is securedto the-side walls of the appara tus by means of bolts and nuts-20.' Immediately above the heating means a water 1 container 22' is rem'ovably positioned; The'conta-iner 221cmprisesfa shallow vessel which-is sup'po'rte'd upon I v I temper within, even though-seemingly dry on its surface I .I

E :Toprepare thechannel-'flap' for the laying operation and to improve the-temper of the surface of the. sole forth'e leveling operation, the operator takes a sh'OeQsuch as the shoe S; and places it over one'of-a, the apertures 44 in the plate: 42." The' gas burner I 16-'will have been adjusted so thatthe water in the container 22 is heated to such an extent that a steady but not --too violent stream or current 'of' steam at atmospheric pressurepasses up the chimney-'*8 and impinges aga'ins't'the entire area of the tread-of the sole including the channel flap;

a funnel 26. Water, is supplied to-the container 22v by drip feeding means comprising a "reservoir 28 which, for purposes ofobtainingcomparative 1y large holding capacity,'-is made=-toxenibrace three sides of the chimney 8.- The reservoir "28 is supported on 'a ledge 3Qat the rear 'of' the apparatus and is held securely: in" place on the chimney by means of a strap 32. Thereservoir 28 may be filled with water through an opening in its upper' wall 'on raising a hinged cover 34. Near'thebase of the reservoir an outlet "tube 36 is providedand the rate of flow'of liquid' from the reservoir-may be controlled by'a valve"38. The lower end of the outlet tube 36 is located just I the whole of the tread face T of the sole) has been 7 subjected -"-to': the action of the impinging steam for a shortperiodthe'operator will transfer the shoe "to that one ofthe jacks'54 of the levelling machine which isj'at' the time located inshoe-reeeivin'g position and i will Q rub down the channel-flap (which will be found to bein mellow andfeas'ily workable condition) with a 'sleeking tool; such as the -tool' 56 "shown ini Fig. 4, while the shoe-is on-the *ja'ck. After the' channel -flap F-hasben laidthe jack ismoved intoi'position to be acted upon by a leveling pad "(corresponding to the pad 58 shown in thedrawing); Thereafter:'the shoe is removed fromthe leveling machine. and; if desired, it H may =rimmediately be subjected to the customary bottom finishing operations .one of which 'isillustratedin Fig."5 wherein a finishingroll is indicated at 60. 1 It will-be noticed that the construction or. the steaming 'apparatusis such that the moistening eifect of :the steam "is: confined substantiallyto the shoe .bottom 'inone' of the J esteam being dimally the valve 38 will be so :adjusted that the container 22 will be supplied with'wa'ter, from steam is-formed. v e N,

i The upperrportion ofthetempering ap-' paratus is ofinverted truncated pyramidal-form and containsa': plurality of bafiieeplates40by' which the steam; constrained in the chimneyyf; to flow upwardly therethrough, is evenly-distributed throughout the cross-sectional areja of the'chamber, in the portion 10.- Above the-baffle horizontal partition-or plate 42 having two open-'- ings; 44 (Fig:-2) :through which the steam must escapebeforeit. can become;-dissipated-;in the shape ofa shoe-bottom but a little larger than the latter, their purpose being toexpose for treatm'enttheoutsoles: of shoes placed right side '-'up in themorin register with them. from. above.

type, such, for example, as the machine disclosed granted August 13, 19 18, 'upon =application of to :be' acted upon by leveling padsj Shoes will" flap; may stillbe mellow and in'moderatelygood After-the channel flap F '(and also substantially s e k s 1,986,946.

rected into the shoe and all ofit being dissipated .inthe atmosphere as soon as it escapes from either of the openings 44.. Afterthe channel flap has been rubbed down the operator will trip the levelling machine sothat the jack 54 is carried forward and the shoe bottom is sub- :jected to levelling pressure. While one shoe is being levelled the bottom of another shoe (resting on the same or on the other aperture 44) may be steamed by the apparatus shown in Figs. 1 and 2.since the tempering proceeds without requiring attention or manipulation of the work on the part of the operator beyond the presentation of work to and its removal from the steaming apparatus. Thus no delay. is caused through the operator's havingto wait for a shoe to be steamed. In certaincases the operators of two levelling machines may arrange to use a single steaming apparatus ofthe form just described.

In such cases the steaming apparatus would be located between the two operators and one operator would make use exclusively of the lefthand steaming aperture44 while the other would use the right-hand'aperture 44. v

-We have noticed that anotheradvantage accrues from the use of the already described steaming method. McKay sewn. shoes are commonly sewn with waxed thread. The effect of the steam is to soften the wax on the thread and when the shoe is transferred to the levelling (machine the wax will still be soft. vWhen the channelflap is laid downand levellingpressure applied the flap will beforced down into contact adhesion of the flap to the sole additionally with the plastic wax on the sewing thread or obtruding from the stitch holes which the flapcovers. When the wax rehardens it apparently adheres to the channel flaps thus making the secure.

tially the whole of, the shoe bottom is exposed to the action of the steam. Though the time.

of exposure is short the tempering effect of the steam on the surface of the sole facilitates the levelling operation to asubstantial extent.

Using the method hereinbefore described it is found that the shoe bottom after levelling is not by any means in such a wet condition as it would have been hadthe previously employed method of applying water directly to the channel It will be recognized that with the illustrative steaming apparatus already described substanflap immediately before channel laying been made .use of and hence it is found that such small degree of dampness as is communicated by thesteaming to the channel flap and the surface of the sole, whether on account of its being imparted under hot conditions or for some other reason, dries ofi veryquickly, and as a result the shoe is in a suitably dry condition for finishing immediately after the levelling operation.

claim as new anddesire to procure by Letters Patent of the United States is: I

.1. An apparatus for tempering the tread-soles of shoes, comprising a casing forming a treatment chamber adapted to receive the entire tread-sole of a shoe, a substantially horizontal steam-constraining partition arranged in said chamber and having an opening larger than, but approximating the size and, the shape of, a tread-sole, a work-supporting platform arranged adjacentto, and in register with, said opening to permit emission of steam through substantially the entire area thereof, and means for supplying steam in said casing below said partition.

l 10 Having thus described our inventionwhat we 2. A steaming device for use in retempering channel flaps onthesoles of shoes comprising a receptacle for liquid, a reservoir from. which the supply of liquid in said receptacle may be replenished, means for heating liquid in said receptacle, a chimneyrising from said receptacle and having a flaring upper portion, a plate extending across the chimney above said flaring portion and below the top of the chimney, said plate having two openings therein, each of approximately the shape of a shoe bottom, and a .sheet of wire netting beneath said plate conpressure to the bottom of a shoe standing onsaid reticulate member. I WALTER JAMES SMITH.

ALFRED RICHARD OKEY. 

